Attention: TheKnightsOfThePentagonalOttomen Do Not Own Fruits Basket or any of the included characters. We do however own the Taiyou Family! Enjoy!
Editor's Note: Why should I even try to apologize for not updating in so long? It's been what, a year since MY last update. Please do not be angry with any of the other knights, the author has been done with the next two chapters for a while now, so I'll try to work those into editing soon as well. Gomen! Gomen! Gomen! I'm not worthy of those who've bothered to even check this chapter!
"Well I hope you're happy! Making me drive all the way down here to listen to the principle bitch about how you two got into a fight with a bunch of guys at your school!" Vanya complained in a whining tone the others were all to accustom to hearing. "But, it was not all a waist. I saw a really….interesting guy on the way to the office. He looked pretty good in a suit." Vanya was tapping her index finger on her chin thinking about the guy she saw at the school.
"OH! I can't wait to play with him." Vanya squealed in a high school girl tone.
"Vanya, when did we ever care about your love life?" Alarice raise her head from her homework and turned it slightly so she could see Vanya's reaction.
"Hmph. Well, moving on, the two of you; Tempest and Aiden are grounded for two weeks. I will reduce it to one week, if you clean the house and do all the chores for the week as punishment." Vanya said with a smirk on her face. Lowering herself to sit at the hand-polished mahogany table.
"Whatever." Tempest said, not caring what she had to do to get out of an extra week of punishment.
"I'll get started on dinner then." Aiden got up and started cooking, knowing the punishment started today.
Caira smiled with sweet victory apparent on her face. Then went back to her homework.
"That was uncharacteristically charitable of you. Why did you give them a break on punishment? I know you called Margo and told her about all this." Alarice inquired knowing something was amiss.
With a smile on her face, Vanya spun around and smirked at Alarice, "Well if you must know, the principal explained what he thinks happened. I also received some other very interesting information from him. He told me about the school's fundraising festival and how imperative it is that Aiden be present."
"So if she were grounded for two weeks, she would miss the festival and neglect her duty as dunkie for the dunk tank." "You are sick!" Alarice quipped when she figured out what Vanya was planning.
"Not only that, but he enlightened me about how I could contribute. He even asked me to be a judge for a rather intriguing contest." Vanya said as she smiled.
'I bet she charmed him into asking her to judge.' Tempest and Caira thought to them selves with a disapproving shake of their heads.
"But sadly I turned him down. I don't think it would be fair to the contestants. They probably wouldn't be able to concentrate with me standing there in all my magnificence." Vanya said, punctuating the point by flipping her hair and batting her eyelashes.
"Well that's good: We wouldn't want people trying to buy you; what with you being a judge and all." Alarice said with a smile. She then started up to her room, wanting time to think alone.
"Actually, while I was on my way out, your principal told me I should be proud you were chosen and that I should come watch the…auction." Vanya put extra emphasis on the last word, making sure it worked it's way into Alarice's head.
"What?" Alarice turned on the third step, facing Vanya with a look of something not dissimilar from fear in her eyes.
"Oh, Yes. I know about your little fund raiser, and I wouldn't want you to miss it for the world!" Vanya declared, holding her permission slip. "You wouldn't want to disappoint the boys who are sooo looking forward to bidding on you."
"Wait! I am not going; I don't even like the idea. Besides Margo won't agree to that!" Alarice cried, trying to find a reason to not go.
"Oh I already talked to Margo; she said it would be alright. Beside I wouldn't want you to miss this for the world." Vanya stated in a very triumphant voice.
Alarice sighed in an odd combination of submission and distress, knowing that nothing good would come from this festival.
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So, the day of festival had arrived. Tensions between the Sohmas and the Taiyous were as bad if not worse than they were on the first day of school. Tempest continued to spout insults at Haru and he in turn continued growling and snapping back. Caira was acting just the same to Momiji; as Aiden with Kyo, which pissed him off even more. (Which Aiden enjoyed very much.) Alarice and Yuki were just fine, plastering fake smiles on their faces when they wanted nothing more to frown.
The festival seemed to get off on the right foot. The sun was shinning and a few white, downy clouds dotted the sky. And with the promise of a shirtless Kyo, and an undoubtedly fiery Aiden spouting insults to spur on people's will to hit the target: The dunk tank seemed to become the center of attention. Haru and Tempest were separated in the end and forbidden from working together; leaving only Momiji and Caira to tend the semi-ring toss both together. Momiji was jumping for joy, while Caira looked like she wanted to jump from a 20-story building. Alarice had already switched for the time and was working in the arts-and-crafts area with some of the little kids that were dragged to the festival by their parents. All the while Yuki was taking care of other main stage preparations.
"Wow, it's so cute, and I can't wait to see what all the kids are selling." Vanya said aloud, practically glowing through the booth area.
"A beautiful woman like you could get anything she wanted." A male voice behind her spoke seductively.
Startled, Vanya turned around, pulling a virtual shampoo commercial; her hair billowing around her face. When she spied the gentle smile of the very handsome man the comment had come from, she returned a smile in kind.
"Oh sir, you would be right, but I can't force everyone to loveme." Giggling, Vanya put her hand to her lips and gave the man a wink. Smiling back, he approached her and gave her hand a gentle kiss.
"Greetings. My name is Sohma, Ayame Sohma. By any chance, would you be so kind as to tell me yours? Also I must tell you that I just love you're a-line skirt suit ensemble." Bowing, Ayame waited for a reply.
"Vanya Taiyou, Attorney at Law. Pleased to meet you." Shaking hands, the two went to get some refreshments while they continued their conversation.
"I must admit I didn't mean to startle you, but I was immediately drawn to your outfit. You know I make outfits myself; you should come to my shop. This is my card."
"Sounds like fun. What kind of outfits do you make?" Ayame handed her a cup of tea.
"Well Miss Taiyou, I make custom outfits for just about every occasion. You might even say I make fantasies come true. Hahahahaha." Ayame laughed as they continued to browse the festival grounds.
"So Mr. Sohma, do you have a relative attending this school?"
"Oh my yes! I'm here to support my wonderfully handsome and incredibly shy little brother. He's one of the second year representatives."
"Oh? So you are here for the auction as well then?"
"Yes I am very excited. How about you? Are you here for anyone in particular?"
"My second cousin is also one of the second year representatives."
"Really? And what might their name be? Perhaps I've heard of them."
"She's a transfer student who just came at the beginning of the year, so you probably won't know her name, but I might have heard of your brother from her. What's his name?"
"Yuki Sohma."
"Really? Well I'm not sure if it is the same person, but I also have a few other cousins who go to this school, and I have definitely heard about the Sohma boys from them."
"Wow. I also have three cousins who attend this school. We all have the same family name, so it is very possible they are indeed the Sohma boys you mentioned."
"Hmm. This may turn out to be a very interesting day indeed."
"Yes, I think you're right." The two once again set out to explore the different things the festival had to offer.
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"How does that look?" Alarice asked the little girl sitting next to her. "Its pretty. Can I make one?" the little girl asked, looking up at her with adorable brown eyes. "Of course. All you need is a piece of your favorite colored paper and some pipe cleaners and we'll go from there." Alarice smiled back down at the little girl, and every boy within a five foot radius blushed.
'Man look at her. She is loving all of the attention she's getting and it makes me sick. This whole place makes me sick. But, I guess it is worth it to see that damn Ram get dunked over and over again.' Caira had been watching the entire exchange from one of the shadows behind the building. She had just gotten back from her turn at the ring toss both, and was trying to ensure her freedom from the annoying Momiji.
Caira was done spying on her family members and decided to go get some lunch. She turned to head back towards the food court, but instead walked right into something hard. "Hey! Watch where you're go…oh a goat. I thought…Well anyways, I had better get you back to the petting zoo." 'Oh god! I have to get out of here!' Caira thought frantically. Just as the boy (who Caira now noticed was very handsome) was about to try to lead her back to the small animal enclosure, she bolted…'Got to hide! Got to hide! Got to hide!' "Hey! Get back here, goat!" The boy shouted, trying to catch up with the now hysterical animal.
"Hey look! It's a goat!" a little boy shouted as he sat at the arts and crafts table. Alarice froze in her seat as she spotted her now transformed cousin running for her life across the field. However, as soon as the little boy finished his sentence, he, along with all of the other children at the table, jumped up and began chasing after.
After her brain caught up with her, Alarice realized that she had to find help and get the situation under control. As she scurried off to find Tempest, she ran into Gypsy, who was attempting to buy something. Without a second thought, Alarice grabbed her arm and continued on down her path until she found Tempest hiding under a tree by the pool.
"What the hell is going on? Why are you out of breath? Hey Gypsy!" Tempest asked as calmly as possible.
"Hey, I don't know. Alarice just grabbed me and dragged me here." Gypsy retorted with a smile.
"CAIRA TRANSFORMED, AND IS BEING CHASED BY A GUY AND A MOB OF KIDS!" Alarice yelled as she tried to get her breathing under control.
"WHAT!" Tempest leapt to her feet. "SHIT! I'll get Aiden! We'd better hurry before she changes back!" Tempest yelled running off to find her cousin.
"I'll go after Caira. Gypsy, I want you to help me. If you find her before I do, bring her back here to the tree and hide her." Gypsy nodded in understanding and the two split up. They all knew what would happen if anyone found out.
Caira was running in the direction of the dunk tank, thinking Aiden might be there. She needed cover, and fast. The guy and the mob of kids chasing her were relentless. Caira soon realized that she had another problem. A goat running around is not an everyday occurrence, and before she knew it more and more people were joining up to help them capture the goat.
Barely making it to the booth before the others, Caira was deflated to find only Kyo and a few of Aiden's classmates. Kyo looked at the goat curiously and as the two of them locked eyes, they were both filled with an unsettling feeling. Shaking it off, Caira ran past Kyo and continued to look for a safe place to hide.
Staring after the goat, Kyo thought 'What was that? Why did that goat seem so familiar?' BAMM Kyo flew backwards as the guy chasing the goat all but ran him over. Now in a daze, Kyo had the opportunity go get to meet everyone else chasing after the escaped farm animal. Terrified and unable to move, Kyo stared on in horror as a little girl in the group tripped on her shoelace and landed on his back.
Now surrounded by a cloud of dust from the hundreds of hurried feet, the little girl didn't seem to notice anything and yelled an apology over her shoulder as she hurried to catch up to the others. "OH SHIT!" Kyo shrieked, running off to find a hiding place. He was just thankful for all of the confusion that seemed to follow the large heard of people: Everyone seemed too distracted to have seen him transform.
Back at the other goat hunting party, Tempest was lucky enough to find Aiden and soon they too were searching for Alarice. Waving frantically, Gypsy ran up to the pair holding Caira's school uniform.
"I found it laying on the side of the building. We need to find her as quickly as possible." Gypsy reminded them nervously.
Both Aiden and Tempest were thinking the same thing. A quick check of the back of the school revealed that Alarice was not having much better luck than they were. Hoping, she had already brought the renegade goat back to the tree. The three cousins were standing together contemplating on where Caira could have run off to, when Gypsy heard a low roar. Calling the others attention to it, they listened quietly as the noise steadily became louder. Guessing the direction the vibrations are coming from, they turn to see Caira running toward them as well as a few schoolboys and a horde of children.
From behind they could hear Alarice shouting to Caira. Noticing her cousins, a wave of relief flooded through Caira's body and she ran past them into a group of bushes. However, before the large group of pursuers could react, they crashed right into the Taiyous. POP. The problem was getting worse. Caira had just changed back and was buried half naked in the bushes. The older guys got up, brushed themselves off, and continued searching for the now bushed goat; while the kids were busy trying to get untangled from themselves.
Suddenly the worst-case scenario began to unfold before their eyes as another distinct POP echoed around the area. Aiden had transformed, and there was now a ram standing in the middle of a pile of kids. Luckily the kids were too excited to notice the girl they ran into suddenly went missing.
Gypsy and Alarice stood there dumbfounded and tried to think of a plan to get them out of there. Caira was hiding in the bushes naked, when a hand brushed against her ass: With a pop and a shriek, she transformed back into the goat. The boy who had accidentally touched her didn't know what he was grabbing until the goat came flying out of the bushes and butted him in the stomach. The other boys took this opportunity and backed away. The other half of the reconnaissance group were busy staring at the ram that the kids were petting and playing with which had seemingly come out of nowhere.
Alarice came running up and grabbed the goat around the neck. Whispering into Caira's ear, she said, "I have a plan. Follow along and don't run way!" Caira growled (as best as a goat can), but nodded.
"Oh, thank you boys sooo much. I was in charge of the little petting zoo we had set up, but this one got away. Again, thank you very much. If there is anything I can do to repay you for your help, just let me know." Alarice was pouring every last ounce of vixen sweet magic she could muster into her words. All of the guys had a glazed look in their eyes and nodded as they walked away.
"That was close, come on." Alarice let go of Caira's neck and started over to Aiden rescue. Gypsy was right at Caira's elbow with her clothes, and she had also gathered Aiden's clothes as well. Meanwhile, Tempest was helping an older gentleman who was swept up in the river of people. As she was kneeling on the ground, fuming about her idiotic cousins, she suddenly felt someone's hand on her ass. As a wave of anger and embarrassment swept through her body, and POP there was a bull standing in the middle of the lawn. "Oh I am sorry. I was looking for help. You see I lost my glasses, and I can't see a thing with out them." The old man tried to focus on the person in front of him and saw he was talking to a bull. "Oh my I thought..."
"Oh sir, are your lost?" Alarice knelt down the help the man up. "You are in the petting zoo area. May I help you look for your glasses?" "Oh yes thank you. I am so embarrassed, talking to a bull like that." The man said as he began to laugh nervously. Alarice took him by the arm and began leading him back towards the festival area.
"Hey, there is a bull and a ram! And the goat is coming too!" The kids were shouting and laughing. Caira, Aiden, and Tempest just stood there knowing that if they so much as said a word, the trouble will never end.
"Okay kids, it's time for the animals to go home; so you need to go back to the festival now. Okay?" Alarice just came back walking calmly. "Oh man! Do we have to?" The kids groaned but they all ended up leaving laughing with big smiles on their faces.
The kids were running in a group back to the festival area, talking about the animals. "My favorite was the ram! Did you see his coat? I like the bull! I think it liked me too!" The kids laughed.
"Hey Haru! Did you hear that, they've got a bull! Come on, come on, let's take a look!" Momiji shouted. Haru and Yuki followed quietly. "No thank, with my luck it will follow me home, and I don't need that kind of attention." Haru explained.
"Well it sounds like there are a ram and a goat there as well. I find that very odd. I don't remember any plans for a petting zoo. Also, where do you get a ram from around here?" Yuki questioned. 'I know for sure there were no plans for a petting zoo. What is going on?' Yuki thought to himself.
"Don't ever do this again, or I am going to kick your ass. Do you have any idea how much trouble we could have been in?" Alarice was shouting at Caira.
"ALRIGHT! I get it. It was not my fault. The guy ran into me and then he started chasing me." Caira explained.
"Well, everything is back to normal. No one saw, and now we can go back to having a fun time okay?" Gypsy said smiling at everyone.
"Whatever. I'm going back to the ring toss." Tempest said wearily.
"Oh man, I wish I had a camera. Your face was priceless. The way the kids loved petting you. Oh and don't forget about the cute little one who tried to ride you! Oh I will never forget it." Aiden was laughing her ass off, while Caira was getting redder and redder from anger and embarrassment. Alarice just shook her head and started heading back towards the arts and crafts area. She wanted to take a nap, but knew she had to take care a few things before going home.
"I am sorry for running off like that, I had to go take care of the animals. Now lets get started with drawing, okay?" Alarice smiled at the children. The children decided that they'd had enough excitement for one afternoon; and since they all liked Alarice so much, they decided that drawing wouldn't be such a bad idea.
'Wow, she is really good with kids. I wonder if she's the one that started the petting zoo. I still don't get it though, how did she get the animals into the school without being seen?' Yuki thought to himself as he was watching Alarice with the kids.
"Attention everyone! The main event, our own "Student Auction" is about to begin! Please make you way to the main assembly hall and the main stage area. Don't forget to have your money ready! You want to be ready when your bachelor or bachelorette is up on stage! Thank you!" The intercom announcer announced.
"Ooh I can hardly contain myself! They're getting ready to start the auction!" Ayame mused out loud.
"That's the main reason I came today. My dear cousin is being action and I wanted to be her and support her. I am so proud." Vanya wiped a fake tear from the corner of her eye.
"Oh that is the most beautiful thing I've ever heard! What wonderful family love. My younger brother is be auctioned as well. I shall support him and offer a high bid for him, so we can expand our brotherly bond." Ayame said, practically glowing.
"That is so wonderful! Lets go and support our families!" Vanya said with a smile.
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"Oh I totally forgot! Oh man, I sooo don't want to do this!" Alarice whined quietly. "What is wrong ma'am?" a little girl asked Alarice.
Alarice smiled, "Well It's about the main event. I am supposed to be in it, but I don't think I'm pretty enough to be auctioned off." The little girl looked up at Alarice in a puzzled look. 'Maybe she doesn't understand the auction part.' Alarice thought.
"I think your beautiful. I wish I was a beautiful as you." The little girl said.
"But, I think your cuter then me. Lets see….." Alarice grabbed some glitter and started sprinkling it in the little girl hair and added a few fake flowers. "There now, you are the princess." The little girl giggled and then, with out warning started putting glitter into Alarice's hair.
"What is this for?" Alarice asked the little girl.
"It's to make you see that your pretty enough to be auctioned off, just like everyone else." The little girl said in a very matter-of-fact tone.
Alarice giggles, "Thank you very much. Well I guess I should get going, huh?"
"I'll cheer for you, okay?" the little girl said while waving good-bye.
'Great, here I go. Man, I hope no weirdos place a bid for me.' Alarice thought to herself as she marched of to the slaughter.